Earthlight
by ajfankeith
Summary: The Doctor, Jade and Orleo return to Earth, twenty years on from a previous visit. But, something is very wrong.
1. Chapter 1

Earthlight

_DISCLAIMER: I am not connected to Doctor Who and its characters, which belong to the BBC._

_-O-_

_PREFACE: In the late 1990's, I wrote two Doctor Who stories and, more recently, posted them to FanFiction. They are called 'Empire of the Daleks' and 'The Overlords'. I have now written another story, using the same characters that appear in the other two stories. This story will have three chapters._

_-O-_

Chapter 1 – Return to Earth

"So, where are we going?" Jade looked excited, like a girl waking up on Christmas morning.

"Your home planet," the Doctor replied.

"Why are we going there again?" Orleo looked less than impressed.

"I need some more mercury and Earth is one of the best sources," the Doctor replied.

The Tardis materialised but, when the Doctor activated the viewing screen, there was complete blackness outside, "That's odd," the Doctor rubbed his chin, thoughtfully, "it's not even night time according to my instruments, yet there's no light at all. We'll have to investigate."

Jade gave Orleo a knowing look and rolled her eyes, "What century are we in?" she asked.

"I set the controls to bring us back to the twenty-seventh century, when we were here before. Except, we've overshot a bit so it looks like we're about twenty years on from our last visit. I wonder how Leanne and Lothan fared: they'll be older now, of course."

The Doctor flipped a switch to open the doors of the Tardis and the black screen of the viewing scanner was confirmed to be correct: there was complete darkness outside. There was also an eerie silence.

"This is very mysterious," the Doctor began searching for some torches. Finding some in a cupboard, he handed Jaded and Orleo one each and switched on his own one. Then he marched forward out of the door, hotly pursued by his two companions.

Some dead trees could be seen in their torch beams, but no signs of life or lights could be seen anywhere. Suddenly, Jade spotted something in the inky blackness: it was a faint glow, "Doctor, do you see that?"

The Doctor had also spotted it, "Yes, it looks like a light: probably some way off...I suggest we head that way."

They traipsed for what seemed like hours in the impenetrable gloom, although it was actually about thirty minutes. As they approached the source of the light, they realised that it was a building that they had visited on their last trip to Earth, in the city of the Immortals! However, it was not brightly lit like the last time.

"Well," the Doctor said, "I think I might find some mercury here. We'll just have to dodge those Immortals this time."

They entered the building and stood in the entrance hall, but there was no sign of life. The only lights in the place emitted a faint glow, like emergency lighting.

"I don't like it," Jade remarked, "It's creepy."

"HALT!" a woman's voice came from behind them and they spun around to see a female, dressed in a uniform, pointing a weapon in their direction.

"We mean you no harm," the Doctor reassured her, holding his hands aloft, "We just need some mercury for my ship."

"Doctor?" the woman exclaimed, letting her weapon drop to her side, "Is that you?"

"Leanne!" the Doctor gasped.

Leanne rushed to greet the Doctor, Jade and Orleo, "How can it be you? You don't look a day older!"

"That's because we're not, comparatively speaking," the Doctor replied, "We've jumped twenty years of your time."

The Doctor studied Leanne's face in the gloom: she looked a lot older and very thin and gaunt, "What's happened here? Why is it so dark?"

"It's the planet Sigma," Leanne explained, "It arrived ten years ago and blocked the sun from the Earth. Everything is dead."

"The planet Sigma?" the Doctor queried.

"Yes, well that's what the scientists called it. Sigma is the eighteenth letter of the Greek alphabet and the planet blocked out the sun on the eighteenth of August that year. I think that's why they called it that."

"Where did it come from?"

"No-one knows. The scientists tracked it as it approached, at first they were worried that it was going to collide with the Earth, but it settled onto an orbit round the sun. Trouble is, it was just the right size to eclipse the sun and it always sits between the sun and our planet. So, without sunlight, all life on Earth ceased to exist."

The Doctor looked at Leanne steadily, "But you're still alive...how do you explain that?"

"After Sigma came, all able-bodied people were drafted into the army. They built a spaceship to fly to Sigma in the hopes that life could exist there as it gets sunlight. Some personnel left for Sigma on the ship and others took over the cities, like this one. We have survived by growing our own food in the greenhouses in the cities, helped by artificial sunlight. That's why I'm posted here, to stop any marauders from stealing the food. There are still some Immortals in the Outlands who try to break in."

"So, the Immortals don't control the cities anymore?" Jade asked.

"No!" Leanne replied, "They were banished to the Outlands after the coming of Sigma. I expect a lot of them are dead now, they lost their surgeons in the Sigma holocaust and, when they couldn't get any life essence from people, they weren't immortal anymore."

"What happened to your brother Lothan?" Orleo asked.

Leanne looked sad, "He was drafted into the army too and went to Sigma on the spaceship. That was eight years ago now. I had to stay here as I was assigned to protect the greenhouses in the city. They were going to fly back to pick up survivors if they managed to find a home on Sigma, but no-one ever came back. I don't know if he's alive or dead."

"I'm sorry," the Doctor looked at Leanne with compassion, "He was a good man."

"Thanks," Leanne gave the Doctor a weak smile, "We've not heard anything from the ship since they left, it is possible that they survived, but we've no way of knowing. We'd need power to transmit and receive signals and all our remaining power has to go to the greenhouses, to keep us alive."

"Well," the Doctor summed up the situation, "I think I need to visit this Sigma to see what's going on. But first, I need that mercury. Is there any in the city, Leanne?"

"I don't know," Leanne answered, "But I know they used it in that stabilising station that the Daleks built."

"The Daleks!" the Doctor gasped, "Are they still here on Earth?"

"No," Leanne replied, "Once they had finished building that dome, they left. It was around the same time that the new planet arrived. The human race was devastated and the Daleks could not enslave anyone as there was practically no-one left alive. I suppose they thought that Earth was a dead planet by then and of no more use to them."

"Well, I need to get to the stabilising station to get some mercury," the Doctor said, "and then I intend going to Sigma to see what's going on there."

"Can I come with you?" Leanne asked, tentatively, "I might be able to find out what happened to Lothan."

"Yes, of course," the Doctor smiled.

The four of them, torches at the ready, headed off into the darkness. There was a little light from the moon, which was obviously catching the sun's rays from behind Sigma, but the Earth was completely eclipsed by the planet. It was just as well that Leanne knew the way, as they gained very little assistance from their torches or the feeble light from the moon. They picked their way carefully across the barren terrain, mindful not to trip up and injure themselves.

Eventually, they reached the dome. The stabilising station had been left intact by the Daleks, who had built it with the aid of their human slaves. The Doctor and his companions found the entrance and made their way inside the structure. It was eerily quiet inside and, like the building in the city, only lit by a faint glow. They made their way around a platform, edging towards a ramp which descended to the floor of the dome. There did not appear to be anyone around but, in the gloom, they caught sight of a figure sitting in a chair. It was an old woman, who tried to shield herself from view as they approached.

"Don't be alarmed," The Doctor tried to put her mind at rest, "We mean you no harm."

"What do you want?" the old woman asked, "Where have you come from?"

"Dorraine?" Leanne had recognised the voice, although the appearance of her ex-mistress had completely changed. She was shrivelled up and wrinkled and looked every one of her three-hundred and twenty years of age.

Dorraine looked carefully at Leanne, "I know you! You used to be a slave girl once, before they came and drove the Immortals out of their rightful home."

"What's happened to you?" Leanne was shocked to see Dorraine like this. She had always looked so young, despite her great age, but that was only due to the regular injections of life-essence from hapless victims and without those, her body was reverting to its proper age.

"I'm dying," Dorraine said, pathetically, "When the Outlanders ousted us from the city, they signed our death warrant. Most of the Immortals are gone now...I'm one of the last survivors. I only have a limited supply of food left and, when that's gone, it will be the end for me. I'm too weak now to carry out a food raid on the city and most of my companions who could help me are dead. I'm doomed."

Leanne took the Doctor to one side, "Isn't there anything we can do for her?"

"Why would you care what happens to her?" the Doctor replied, "Don't you remember how she tried to do away with you that time when you helped us all those years ago?"

"I remember," Leanne flinched at the memory, "But I hate to see her suffering now. She was only protecting herself...she didn't know any better. That's how the Immortals had been for years and it was instinctive for her to behave the way she did."

"You are a very forgiving person, Leanne...and it's more than she deserves, but I'll see what I can do. Although I imagine her life is coming to an end in any case. That's the way of the universe."

The Doctor addressed Dorraine, "I can get you some food, but I need something in return."

Dorraine eyed the Doctor suspiciously, "You are an enemy of the Immortals, how do I know I can trust you?"

"You don't." The Doctor answered, curtly, "But I give you my word that I will help you, as long as you help us."

"How can _I_ help _you_?" Dorraine still looked suspicious.

"I need mercury for my ship," the Doctor came to the point, "You could save us a lot of time if you tell us where we can find some in this dome."

Dorraine rose unsteadily to her feet, "Follow me," she gestured for them to accompany her. Her gait was that of someone who suffered from severe arthritis and she stooped as she hobbled along.

Dorraine guided them to the supply of mercury and the Doctor thanked her for her assistance. He was about to pledge to her that he would return with some food, but Dorraine suddenly collapsed, clutching her chest.

"This is it," Dorraine croaked as she lay on the floor, "My time has come!"

Leanne took Dorraine's hand in her own.

Dorraine looked at Leanne's hand and then at her face, "I'm sorry for the way I treated you," Dorraine's words were hardly audible, "I'm not afraid of death now...this life is...well, it isn't a life. I've lived longer than any human being has a right to. This is my final..."

Leanne felt Dorraine's hand lose its weak grip on hers.

"She's gone," the Doctor said, quietly.

Leanne felt sad. She did not cry, as part of her still disliked Dorraine for the way she used to be, but she still felt sorrow at the loss of another human life.

_Next chapter: Sigma_


	2. Chapter 2

Earthlight

_DISCLAIMER: I am not connected to Doctor Who and its characters, which belong to the BBC._

_-O-_

Chapter 2 – Sigma

As Jade, Orleo and Leanne looked on, the Doctor fiddled with the controls and muttered to himself as he adjusted a dial on the console, "There, that should give us a fix on the spaceship," he said.

"What are you talking about, Doctor?" Orleo asked.

"The spaceship that went to Sigma," the Doctor replied, "I need to get the Tardis to materialise somewhere near it, otherwise, we could land on the planet and be miles away from it."

"But, we don't even know whether it still exists," Jade was being practical, "How can the Tardis home in on it?"

"The Tardis is a lot more clever than you think," the Doctor spoke with pride in his voice, "The spaceship will have trace elements from the Earth that will not be found anywhere on the other planet. If that ship is on the surface somewhere, the Tardis will pin-point it precisely using the terrascan circuit."

"The what circuit?" Orleo raised his eyebrows.

"Never mind that now," the Doctor dismissed Orleo's question, "We're landing."

Sure enough, the Tardis materialised in a dense jungle. The Doctor checked the atmosphere with his instruments, "Well, we can go outside, the air is perfectly breathable and there's tolerable radiation."

It was hot in the jungle, with lush growth everywhere and the sound of running water nearby, but there was no birdsong. After they had walked a fair distance, they came to an abrupt halt.

"Look!" exclaimed Orleo as he pointed at a metallic object sticking out of the undergrowth.

"That must be the ship from Earth," the Doctor surmised, "I told you the Tardis wouldn't let us down. Come on!"

They all headed off towards the ship, but there was no sign of anybody. They found a door and searched inside, but it was empty.

Leanne looked sad as she and the others stood inside the ship, "I wonder what happened to everyone."

"How many people were on board?" asked Jade.

"Lothan said about two hundred," Leanne replied, "If they crashed, there would at least have been bodies on board, but it's deserted."

"That means they must have gone off somewhere," the Doctor said, trying to give Leanne hope that her brother had survived, "Maybe they set up camp in another place."

"Do you think they could still be alive?" asked Orleo.

"Well," the Doctor looked pensive, "If I know Lothan he would definitely fight to survive. It looks as if there's a plentiful supply of food and water. I imagine a lot of the vegetation will be edible."

"What do we do now?" Jade asked.

The Doctor took charge as always, "We'll head back to the Tardis. I can set up a scan and see if that produces any results. If anyone is still alive on this planet, we'll find them."

Before anyone could move, they heard a sound at the door. As they looked, a man with long, unkempt hair and a heavy growth of beard appeared at the doorway. As soon as he saw them, he drew a gun and pointed it in their direction, "Where have you sprung from?" he asked.

"We're from Earth," the Doctor replied, "We came here in my ship."

"Ship?" the dishevelled man looked suspicious, "This is the only ship that left Earth, you're lying."

"It's true!" Jade spoke, "The Doctor here has his own vessel...a time machine."

The man laughed, "Time machine? What do you take me for? There's no such thing."

Leanne was next to speak, "I'm searching for my brother, Lothan Willis, he was on board this ship. Is he around here somewhere?"

The man looked surprised, "Lothan? He's out gathering food...did you say you are his sister?"

"Yes."

The man lowered his weapon, "Then you must be Leanne."

"That's right!"

"I've heard him speak of you," the man became more amiable, "But...you were left behind on Earth. We thought everyone would have perished in the darkness."

"Some of us survived by growing food in the city greenhouses," Leanne explained, "We were hoping to hear from your ship, but there was never any word. I was worried that Lothan might not have survived."

"He's OK, but many of us died," the man looked distraught, "Some in the crash landing and some from the plague."

"The plague?" the Doctor asked.

"Yes," the man continued, "After we crashed, we tried to fend for ourselves, but there must have been bugs on this planet that gave everyone a disease, many people died from it, but a few of us survived. Me, Lothan, Atala, Shem, Betina and Karyn."

"Is that all?" the Doctor enquired.

"Yes, we got better and we seem to be immune to it now."

The Doctor held his hand out to shake the man's, "I'm the Doctor and this is Jade, Orleo and you already know Leanne's identity."

"I'm Farrid," the man introduced himself, just as another man entered through the doorway.

"Lothan!" Leanne cried and rushed to greet her brother. The Doctor would not have recognised him as he was in a similar state to Farrid.

Lothan hugged Leanne, "I never thought I'd see you again," he gasped, "how did you get here?"

"The Doctor brought me," Leanne indicated her companions.

Lothan shook the Doctor's hand, "Doctor! Well, this is a turn-up: you always seem to be reuniting me with my sister."

"Yes," the Doctor chuckled, "It does seem to be becoming a habit, doesn't it? You remember Jade and Orleo, of course."

Lothan shook their hands, "It's good to see you again! I must apologise for my appearance, personal grooming tends to take a back seat when you're fighting for survival!"

Farrid addressed Lothan, "Where are the others?"

Lothan smiled at his friend, "Still out gathering food, they're down by the river, I've just brought the first of it back," so saying, he placed a sack on the floor.

"What did you manage to find?" asked Farrid.

"Plenty of Boniface leaves and some of those Gallum fruits," Lothan replied.

"They're strange names," the Doctor observed.

"They are named after the people who first discovered them. Sadly, they passed away in the plague," Lothan said, with a sorrowful look on his face.

"Yes." the Doctor said, "Farrid told us about that. You must tell us all about your life here."

"I'll go back to the others," Farrid said, "You stay here with your friends. See you later." He disappeared through the door.

Lothan gestured everyone to sit down and he gripped Leanne's hand in his own, "Now then, where do I start? Farrid probably told you that we crash landed. The radio was busted so we couldn't send any messages back. We tried to make the best of things, but it hasn't been easy. After a while, everyone caught the plague and I thought that we were all done for, but six of us recovered. I'm with Betina now and Farrid is with Atala an Shem with Karyn. We were lucky to be able to form three couples and we hoped to have children to start over again on this world, but I think we must be infertile as none of the women have conceived. Maybe the plague did that to us, but without any medical experts, it's hard to tell. Our main enemies are the Arachnoids."

"Arachnoids?" the Doctor queried.

"Yes, they are hideous winged creatures, like giant flying spiders, about the size of a man. Before the plague hit us, several people got snatched by them and carried off to the Arachnoids nests. They never returned and we can only imagine what happened to them."

"Where are these nests?" the Doctor asked.

"Outside the jungle: in the hills away to the north of here. We are relatively safe in the jungle: they don't seem to like trying to land where there is dense vegetation. I went on an expedition to the hills once and found the nests there and we were lucky to escape. But the Arachnoids seem to mainly sleep during the day and fly in the twilight."

"They sound like bats," Jade observed.

"Yeah, I suppose you're right, although they don't look anything like bats."

"Why did you call them Arachnoids?" the Doctor wanted to know.

"That was Professor Blain," Lothan replied, "He came up with the name, I don't know why. He said that they looked like arachnids so I suppose the name stuck. They seem to live on any creatures that they can catch."

"Well," the Doctor smiled at Lothan, "I can take you back to Earth in the Tardis if you want, as there are only six of you."

"It's a tough call," Lothan looked pensive, "It's hard to fight for survival here, but at least we have sunlight and there's none of that on the Earth, plus all plant life on Earth is dead too. I don't know which planet is preferable."

The Doctor rubbed his chin, "I take your point, Lothan, but I'm hoping to get to the bottom of this problem. It seems a bit strange that a planet like Sigma just happens to have parked itself between the sun and the Earth. Plus, it is also very odd how the planet is just the right size to eclipse the sun. If you ask me, I think there's more to this than meets the eye."

"Are you saying that someone has planned all this?" Orleo looked amazed.

"I have my suspicions," the Doctor replied.

"But, the only creatures that we've ever seen are of low intelligence, like the Arachnoids," Lothan countered, "I can't see them having the capability to move the planet around at will."

"Maybe someone else did it," Jade suggested.

"Exactly, Jade," the Doctor became animated, "some intelligence, as yet unknown, might have manipulated this planet for their own ends."

Orleo rolled his eyes, "Why did you have to say that, Jade? Now the Doctor will get us into some more scrapes if we're not careful."

"You needn't blame Jade," the Doctor looked sternly at Orleo, "I had come to my own conclusions, all by myself."

"Thank you, Doctor," Jade had a self-satisfied smirk on her face.

"Here we go again!" Orleo looked to the heavens.

Later, when the rest of the ship's party returned, they all sat down together to enjoy a meal. Although it only consisted of Sigma's edible fruit and vegetation, it was tasty and nourishing. The Doctor and his companions accepted the offer of beds for the night on board the ship as it was now too dark to struggle through the jungle back to the Tardis.

The next morning, the Doctor, Jade, Orleo, Leanne and Lothan set off towards the hills as the Doctor wanted to investigate. Orleo, despite his previous comments about their expedition, was secretly looking forward to another adventure.

On the edge of the jungle, they stood looking at the hills which seemed to stretch for miles ahead of them. The sun was burning in the blue sky and, being closer than on the Earth, it was very hot and the Doctor knew that they would all make good use of the flasks of water that they had brought with them. They set off towards the hills, under instructions from Lothan that they should turn back well before dark, so that they could return to the cover of the jungle before the Arachnoids stirred from their nests.

As they climbed a steep hill, the Doctor noticed a circular pattern in the grass beneath them, "What have we here?" he asked and they all looked at the strange flattened grass which formed a perfect circle about a metre wide.

"Looks like somebody has walked round and round and squashed it flat," Jade observed.

"Yes," replied the Doctor, "I'll see if it registers on this." So saying, he pulled out his sonic screwdriver and pointed it at the circle. At first, nothing happened. But then, the circle began to rotate and make a strange, metallic grating sound. Then, the rotation stopped and the circle stood proud of the grass around it. Slowly, the Doctor, Orleo and Lothan grabbed the circular shape and pulled it open, like a lid.

_Next chapter: The secret of Sigma_


	3. Chapter 3

Earthlight

_DISCLAIMER: I am not connected to Doctor Who and its characters, which belong to the BBC._

_-O-_

Chapter 3 – The secret of Sigma

"There's a shaft down here," Orleo said as he peered down it after they had removed the cover, "Looks like a ladder, I'll climb down and take a look."

"Be careful," Jade watched as Orleo descended into the gloom.

"Can you see anything?" the Doctor shouted down the shaft, after they had given Orleo enough time to climb down a little way.

"There's a long corridor," Orleo's voice had an echo as he shouted up, "it looks safe if you want to follow me down."

The Doctor went next, then Lothan, followed by Jade and Leanne. When everyone had reached the bottom of the shaft, they could see the long corridor that Orleo had referred to. It stretched away from them as far as the eye could see in both directions. The walls looked like they were made of metal and dim lights in the ceiling illuminated the passageway.

"Which way do we go?" Jade asked.

"That's a good question," the Doctor replied, "Let's go this way," he said, as he set of to his right.

They walked for ages, but still the passageway continued, with nothing but the metal walls either side. There were no doors or entrances of any kind. Then, after a few hundred metres, they came to an opening in the wall, which led to another vertical shaft with a ladder, descending to another level further down.

"Shall we?" the Doctor indicated that he wished to climb down the ladder.

They all made their way down again to find yet another corridor.

"I wonder how far these shafts go down," Jade said.

"Yes...and where do they lead?" the Doctor pointed his sonic screwdriver at the wall, "Hmm, I don't recognise this substance, it looks metallic, but my instrument is not detecting its composition."

"Well, I don't want to be a killjoy," Lothan said, "But we'd better turn back soon if we want to dodge the Arachnoids on our return journey."

The Doctor looked disappointed, "But, we haven't found out where this leads!"

"I know," Lothan replied, "But we don't know how far we need to go to discover anything and we need to protect ourselves. If we leave it too late, we could become fodder for the Arachnoids."

The Doctor capitulated, "Yes, old chap, you are quite right. We need to return safely. Maybe we can come back again when we've got more time to explore."

Lothan ascended the ladder in the shaft but, when he reached the top, he found his way blocked, "I can't get through, there's a seal at the top of the shaft. That wasn't there when we came down."

Lothan attempted to push the seal open, but it would not move. He climbed back down the ladder to join the others.

"Let me try with the sonic screwdriver," the Doctor said as he ascended the ladder but, a few minutes later, he came back down again. "It's no use, it is completely shut tight."

"What are we going to do, Doctor?" Jade looked worried.

"We'll have to try another shaft," the Doctor replied, "These corridors seem to have a number of shafts, we might find one that is open."

They set off along the corridor but, after a few hundred metres, they came to a dead end. They turned back and passed the sealed-off shaft again but, after walking some distance, they arrived at another dead end.

"We're trapped!" Jade's voice had a hint of panic.

"I must admit," the Doctor said, "There does not appear to be an escape route open to us. We'll just have to try to open that seal in the shaft and go back the way we came."

Before they could make another move, the seal on the end of the corridor opened, like a sliding door and a robotic creature stood looking at them, pointing a weapon in their direction. It looked humanoid and similar to a Cyberman although the Doctor had not seen such a creature before.

"Who are you?" the Doctor challenged the creature.

"I am security drone two-thousand and six," the robot spoke in a monotone voice, "You are trespassing in Verron territory. Follow me!"

The robot moved off the way it had come and, still brandishing its weapon, indicated for the party to follow. They reached a door in the side of the corridor and were ushered inside a metallic-walled room.

"Wait here," the robot said as it closed the door.

"Hold on, you can't keep us locked up in here!" the Doctor shouted, but it was too late.

"Verron territory?" Orleo remarked, "Who are the Verrons?"

"I presume they are the people that built this place," answered the Doctor.

"But, they're robots!" Jade remarked.

"Not necessarily Jade," the Doctor smiled, "Our little robotic friend is a security drone: he described himself as that. I imagine his masters are humanoid or, at least, some form of flesh and blood."

Suddenly, a hatch in the wall opened up and revealed several plates laden with food. It was a white substance with a fluffy consistency, similar to mashed potato.

"Well, at least we won't starve," the Doctor picked up a plate and handed it to Jade.

Jade eyed the food suspiciously, "Is it safe?" she asked.

"It's either take a chance on that, or waste away from hunger!" replied the Doctor.

Orleo took the plate and spoon that the Doctor handed him, "Well, I'll risk it! I'm famished!" So saying, he tasted a mouthful of the food, "Mmm, not bad!" he said as he took another spoonful.

"How are we going to get out of here?" Leanne asked as the Doctor handed her a plate of food.

"I imagine these Verrons will want to talk to us," the Doctor replied, "When that robot comes back to fetch us, we'll have to seize our chance!"

"But the exits were sealed, Doctor," Lothan pointed out, "Even if we could escape the robot guard, we can't get out of the corridor."

"Come now, Lothan, do you think I haven't escaped from trickier situations than this? One just needs to apply one's mind to the problem in hand."

"The problem IS...we're stuck!" Orleo had cleared his plate and was back to his sarcastic best.

"At least they're treating us OK," Lothan said, "If they wanted to harm us, why feed us?"

"A good point," the Doctor looked at Lothan, "Maybe they think that we can be of some use to them."

Jade looked pensive, "Do you think these Verrons are responsible for putting this planet between the Sun and the Earth?"

Just then, the door slid open.

"Looks as if we may be about to find out," the Doctor replied, under his breath.

The robot looked at the assembled group, "Do you have a leader amongst you?" it asked.

The Doctor stepped forward, unhindered by the others, "That would be me," he announced.

"You will come with me," the robot said.

"What about my friends?"

"They must stay here: the Verron Queen only wants to speak to the leader."

"The Verron Queen?" the Doctor queried.

"Yes, she is the supreme ruler of the Verrons," the robot answered, "follow me."

The Doctor complied with the robot's order. He was led down the long corridor to an opening in the wall. After stepping through the opening with the robot, the Doctor realised that it was an elevator. The doors closed and he was aware that they were descending quickly.

"Where are we going?" the Doctor asked.

"To the centre of the hive," the robot replied, "The Queen's chamber."

When the doors opened, the sight which greeted him took the Doctor's breath away. There was a vast chamber filled with hideous-looking creatures. They were eight-legged, like spiders, but had almost human faces, except that there were six eyes as opposed to a human's two. In the centre was a creature which was bigger than the others, with a huge body which rested on a cushioned plinth. The grotesque Queen of the species studied the Doctor with its six eyes, "So, you are the leader of the invaders, are you?"

"Not exactly, we don't really have a leader," the Doctor replied.

"You are different to the others, we scanned you all once the food was inside you: it helps us to get a really good picture of your make-up. The others appear to be from that planet called Earth, but you are from somewhere else?"

"Yes," the Doctor answered truthfully, "I'm from Gallifrey."

"Ah," the Queen cried, "A Time Lord!"

"You know of the Time Lords?"

"Yes. You are of a higher intelligence, are the Earth people your slaves?"

"NO!" the Doctor looked insulted, "We don't take people as slaves...that's barbaric."

"Oh come now," the Queen shifted her position as if she was uncomfortable, "Humans are of such a low intelligence...they are easy to rule! We soon had their planet under control by blocking the sun from their world and they didn't see it coming."

"So!" the Doctor shouted, "It WAS you that placed this planet in orbit around the sun."

"This is our ship," the Queen replied, "You've seen some of the underground corridors. We can steer this ship anywhere we like."

"But," the Doctor looked confused, "There is vegetation on the surface...and water...it looks like a planet."

"That's by design: most visitors do not discover our secret. They just think it is a planet like many others. Even those Earth people who crash-landed here didn't discover us until you came along."

"You knew they were here all this time?"

"Of course. We have scanners and sensors everywhere and nothing escapes us and, once you broke into our underground territory, it was easy to ensnare you in our web."

"But there's something I don't understand," the Doctor said, "Why go to all the bother of killing all those people on the planet Earth? What's in this for you?"

"Simple," the Queen almost seemed to be belittling the Doctor, "We need the minerals that the planet Earth can give us, so we crushed all resistance by cutting off the sun. The people are hardly going to surrender their assets willingly, are they?"

"But, how are you going to collect the minerals that you require?"

"With spaceships: manned by drones. We have been constructing ships and drones to go to Earth and we are almost ready. Our underground hanger is on alert and we will launch soon."

"And what about me and my friends?"

"You are no threat to us. You are free to go back to your friends and they are free to return to their ship. I doubt they will survive very long, especially once we've extracted all the minerals we need and move on somewhere else. Once this ship leaves the influence of the sun, they will die."

The Doctor became angry, "What about the others on the surface? The Arachnoids and any other life forms, they will die too!"

"That is incorrect," the Queen stated, "The Arachnoids, as you call them, are part of our species. They are us, but in an early stage of development. Eventually, they evolve into us. Some of them will become Queens and set up other hives. They are given protective shields over their nests when we move off."

"Why can't you protect the humans with shields?" the Doctor asked.

"They are no concern of ours," the Queen said, dismissively, "Now, return to your friends and go back to where you came from."

The Doctor rejoined Jade, Orleo, Leanne and Lothan and informed them of the outcome of his meeting with the Verron Queen.

"So," Lothan said, after digesting the information, "When the Queen decides to move this planet, or ship, or whatever, then we will die?"

"Not if I have anything to do with it," the Doctor replied, "I have a plan to put a stop to that, you won't be on the surface when that happens. Let's get back to the Tardis."

They all made their way to the surface, thankful that they had been released from captivity. Being underground, they had not realised that they had spent a night below the surface and they emerged into the early morning light.

"Well, at least the Arachnoids will be back in their nests," Lothan remarked.

"Yes," replied the Doctor, "That's one less thing to worry about."

After returning to Farrid, Atala, Shem, Betina and Karyn, the Doctor explained about his meeting with the Verron Queen and they were all amazed by his tale. He took everyone back to the Tardis, which amazed them even more!

"Now," the Doctor said as he set his controls, "Let's give our Verron friends a little surprise, shall we?"

"What are you going to do, Doctor?" Jade asked.

"I'm going to materialise in the Verron's spaceship hanger and stop the launch."

"How are you going to do that?" queried Orleo.

"They must have a huge fuel supply in that hanger," the Doctor had a glint in his eye, "It only takes someone to light a match and..."

"Boom!" Orleo spread his arms in an 'exploding' gesture.

The Doctor managed to materialise inside a corridor in the Verron's launching complex. He opened the doors of the Tardis and, with Orleo, Jade and Lothan, headed towards a fuelling point. He produced a small bottle from his coat pocket and looked for a filling cap on a tank.

"Here, this should do it," he said.

"What have you got there?" asked Jade.

"This is an atomic compound which will react with rocket fuel," explained the Doctor, "I just add this to the mixture...so," after removing the cap, he poured the contents of the bottle into the tank, "...and then, after about half an hour, the compound heats up and sets off a chain reaction in the fuel. We just need to be a long way away when that happens!"

They hurriedly made their way back to the Tardis and the Doctor dematerialised after setting the controls for Earth. Moments later, they landed near the City of the Immortals and they all stood outside in the darkness, illuminated only by the faint glow from the nearest building.

Before anyone could speak, there was a bright light in the sky and they all looked up to see a fireball erupt from Sigma. It was so powerful, it propelled the planetoid out of its orbit and the sun burst into view again.

"The explosion has acted like on rocket motor on Sigma," the Doctor explained, "It is leaving its orbit around the sun. I don't think the Verrons will be bothering the Earth for a long time, if at all." He looked at Lothan, Leanne and their friends, "With the other surviving people of Earth, you'll all be able to start over, now that the Earth has sunlight again."

Once more, the Doctor had saved the day!

THE END


End file.
